Feb. 1 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump announced Sunday that he will close Washington's Kennedy Center for two years from July for construction, amid artist cancellations and boycotts protesting his cultural agenda.
Trump said the decision to close the Kennedy Center starting July 4 follows a yearlong review in consultation with contractors, musical experts, arts institutions and advisers and consultants. They had considered a partial construction project that would permit shows to continue, but decided the best option for the venue was a temporary closure.
"In other words, if we don't close, the quality of Construction will not be nearly as good, and the time to completion, because of interruptions with Audiences from the many Events using the Facility, will be much longer," he wrote in a post on his Truth Social media platform.
"This important decision, based on input from many Highly Respected Experts, will take a tired, broken and dilapidated Center, one that has been in bad condition, both financially and structurally for many years, and turn it into a World Class Bastion of Arts, Music and Entertainment, far better than it has ever been before."
Since returning to the White House, Trump has focused on the Kennedy Center as part of his broader cultural agenda aimed at removing left-leaning thought and ideology from public and private institutions.
